The Honolulu Marathon might look smaller this year, but that does not mean there will be changes in the race’s route and road closures for Ala Moana, downtown and East Oahu.
There are about 14,000 people registered to run the Honolulu Marathon on Sunday, which is less than half the amount of runners who were registered in 2019. And the number of participants is expected to be lower because not everyone who signs up for the marathon actually ends up running it.
This is one of the challenges Jim Barahal, chief executive officer of the Honolulu Marathon Association, has been working on through the planning process for this year’s event, which comes after the 2020 marathon was canceled because of the pandemic.
“We realized pretty early that (with) the course, there’s this finite number of intersections and it has to be secured and the way it always has, whether there’s 50 people out there or 50,000,” he said.
“The cost for the police and for the security of the road was not going to be much different even though the number of runners is a lot less. From our point of view, that was a huge financial challenge and from a community point of view, as far as the inconvenience is from the road closures, it’s going to look the same.”
City officials said the marathon’s route and road closures are dictated through the permits that were granted when marathon organizers applied for them.
A city spokesman said taxpayers do not pick up any of the costs of the Honolulu Marathon; all costs for police, traffic control and Department of Transportation Services staff are covered by the marathon.
City Emergency Medical Services are available for additional ambulance capacity in the event of an emergency, but the majority of the medical care is provided by marathon officials, including private medical teams at the start and finish of the race, and a private ambulance company, American Medical Response.
The race route begins on Ala Moana Boulevard and extends through Waikiki, around parts of Diamond Head to Hawaii Kai, before circling back along Kalanianaole Highway and ending in Kapiolani Park.
Some of the main road closures on Sunday include parts of Ala Moana Boulevard from 12:30 a.m. to about 8 a.m., Kalakaua Avenue from 4:30 a.m. to 9 a.m., and Kalanianaole Highway from 3:30 a.m. to 8 a.m.
There will be contraflow lanes to accommodate traffic and detours throughout the morning.
Motorists are advised to use Vineyard Boulevard instead of Ala Moana Boulevard during the road closure. Traffic on Kalanianaole Highway will be diverted onto Hawaii Kai Drive via Kawaihae Street to Lunalilo Home Road.
To enter Kahala Mall during the closure, motorists are advised to take the Waialae off-ramp from the freeway and enter through the entrance by the Chili’s restaurant. Vehicle access to the Kahala Hotel & Resort will be restricted during the marathon, but the hotel will have valet service based at the mall to help shuttle visitors.
Hawaii Kai Neighborhood Board member Herb Schreiner said the road inconveniences from the Honolulu Marathon are just a part of life in the neighborhood.
“I’ve lived in Hawaii Kai since I was a kid, and you just deal with it? You just don’t make plans to go into town unless you have to,” he said. “I think they’ve gotten better over the years as far as having all the police and stuff, but it really hasn’t affected my family because we know it’s coming up, and you just plan for that. And then it’s done by like, halfway through the day.”
Greg Knudsen, another Hawaii Kai Neighborhood Board member, echoed Schreiner’s sentiment.
“The marathon is a pretty big event. And yes, it does create some traffic problems, but they normally have lighted signs up. And plenty of warning is given to the community so we just prepare for it,” he said. “It’s something that is pretty much understood and accepted. I haven’t heard of any real complaints about the marathon.”
Schreiner was supportive of the marathon because of its contributions to Oahu’s economy, even with the smaller turnout.
“I’m pro-economy. So having stuff like this is great for Hawaii and Oahu,” he said.
One of the biggest hits to the the amount of registered runners this year was the loss of the Japanese tourism market, Barahal said.
“The Honolulu Marathon, a lot of our funding has come from the Japan side,” he said. “But we try to run the best business we can. We knew several months ago that we would be able to put the event on, but that it would look different.”
Despite the big drop in participants from 2019, Barahal wanted to keep the celebratory nature of the event, which includes the 5 a.m. fireworks at the marathon’s start on Ala Moana Boulevard.
“If you cancel (the) event two years in a row, you’re running the risk of becoming pretty irrelevant. And so we’re pretty proud of the fact that we are going to put this event on,” he said. “We’re not going to give up.”
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For the full list of marathon road and lane closures, go to honolulumarathon.org/key-information/traffic-advisory.
